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Smith embodies Bournemouth's fairytale
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- Smith embodies Bournemouth's fairytale
[Reuters]
It was a night that always seemed destined to produce a fairytale storyline, such has been the nature of Bournemouth's rise since 2008.
At Wednesday's pre-match news conference, defender Adam Smith - the club's longest-serving player after initially joining on loan from Tottenham in 2011 - admitted he would never have imagined captaining the Cherries in Europe.
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But there was more to come for Smith. The right-back earned his own piece of history by providing the assist for Bournemouth's first European goal on home soil, with Evanilson heading his cross home late in the first half.
"It's been a long time coming. The fans were up for it, the players were up for it, so we are very happy," Smith told TNT Sports.
"We had a chat with each other and we got a reaction. That's an AFC [Bournemouth] performance right there."
Since making his move from Spurs permanent in 2014, Smith has made more than 430 appearances for the Cherries.
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In that time, the 35-year-old has helped Bournemouth secure three promotions, two of which have taken them to the Premier League.
When he was replaced by James Hill midway through the second half, the home supporters rose to their feet and chanted Smith's name as he left the field.
"He's an example to everyone of what hard work looks like and the rewards that you get, even towards the latter stages of your career," added Joel Ward.
"He's extremely professional, and he fully deserves the success he's getting now. Nights like this are what you live for. To walk out captaining that side is emotional and makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck."
